Yemeni-backed Houthis have launched cruise missiles and drones towards Israel.

Yemeni-backed Houthis have launched cruise missiles and drones towards Israel. They say closing Bab al-Mandeb, the narrow strait they already control, is among their options. If that happens, two of the world's three critical maritime chokepoints will be shut at the same time. Hormuz and Bab al- Mandeb are not interchangeable. They play distinct roles in the global trading system. shutting both simultaneously would not simply double the existing disruption. It would compound it in ways that are genuinely difficult to predict. The world is watching one Strait. It may need to start watching two.